‘If all goes according to plan, the two-stage ABM interceptor test will be carried out this June,’ a source at the defence base at Chandipur-on-sea told this website’s newspaper.

The scientists of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) would launch the two-layered missiles to intercept a single incoming target missile in both exo-atmosphere (above 40 km altitude) and endo-atmosphere (below 30 km altitude).

This new ABM system is being developed to counter enemy ballistic missiles. It has been configured with radars for long-range surveillance, tracking, command, control, communication and perfect interception to destroy in-coming missiles.

‘The DRDO is capable of converting the two-layered system into a potent defence missile system, with a range of 2,000 km,’ a defence scientist said.

On November 27, 2006, missile interception at exo-atmosphere was successfully tested when a Prithvi Air Defence (PAD), a modified version of Prithvi missile, was fired to destroy an incoming target missile above 50 km altitude.

India achieved a major milestone on December 6 last when an interceptor missile, dubbed as advanced air defence (AAD), destroyed an incoming missile just 15 km above the surface.

Both the interceptors were, however, developed at the Electronics and Radar Development Establishment (LRDE) in Bangalore.

The success of both the missions had boosted the confidence of the DRDO scientists in networking an array of radars, optics, command, control and communication systems to track an incoming missile in real time, validate all the software computation to develop the double-layered ABM system.